Touch-and-turn oak sculptures unveiled on new Distington walking trail
Riveting Rivers trail lets visitors turn wooden cogs to reveal wildlife life cycles
A new walking route in Distington has opened featuring five interactive oak sculptures that visitors can touch and turn to learn about local wildlife.
The trail, which follows Stubskill Beck, is called the Watery Walk and was officially unveiled on Thursday 10th September.
It has been created by West Cumbria Rivers Trust, with the sculpture collection designed by artist Daniel Weatheritt and funded by the Potato Pot Community Benefit Fund.
What is Riveting Rivers
The sculpture collection is titled Riveting Rivers and takes inspiration from both the natural and industrial heritage of Distington.
Each piece combines handcrafted oak with illustrated dome tops depicting local birds, mammals and other elements connected to the area's heritage.
The name reflects the meeting of nature and industry, bringing together the importance of Distington's rivers with the area's long industrial history.
How the interactive wheels work
Each sculpture features a working oak cog wheel which visitors can turn 360 degrees to reveal the different stages of a creature's life cycle.
As the wheel turns, the story unfolds, showing the wildlife and natural processes connected to the local environment.
Artist Daniel Weatheritt said:
"The Riveting Rivers sculptures have proved to be my most intricate woodwork creations to date, celebrating the diversity and beauty of the local wildlife populations, with a nod to Distington's strong industrial past through the structural design of my sculptures.
Interactivity is really important to me when developing my design ideas, and I want people to be able to do more than just look at the work.
The creature lifecycle wheels offered the perfect solution for this interactive element.
My hope is that they help to broaden people's understanding of the creatures living in the river ecosystem and appreciate the astonishing complexity found in nature.
The pupils at Distington school were a pleasure to work with and really embraced the workshop themes, creating some brilliant interpretations of the five sculpture creatures and their life cycles.
A big thank you to West Cumbria Rivers Trust and the project funders for the opportunity to create such a traditional and unusual body of sculptural work."
Pupils helped shape the designs
Weatheritt spent a day last year working with Year 3 pupils at Distington School, drawing on their ideas to help bring the creatures and their life cycles to life.
Improvements made to the route
Alongside the sculptures, West Cumbria Rivers Trust has carried out improvements to the route, supported by funding from the Potato Pot Community Benefit Fund.
With permission from local landowners, the Trust's apprentices rebuilt a fence, reinstated a stile, built a small boardwalk, improved drainage and installed new waymarkers.
The route forms part of West Cumbria Rivers Trust's wider Watery Walks programme, a series of self-guided walks encouraging people to explore the rivers and landscapes of west Cumbria.
The walks include downloadable walking instructions and illustrated maps created by Cumbrian artists and designers, featuring practical tips, wildlife facts and information about the Trust's conservation work.
Three of the walks are also accompanied by podcasts, recorded and edited by Cumbrian-based journalist Tom Speight.
Trust thanks landowners and funders
Jodie Mills, Director of West Cumbria Rivers Trust, said:
"We're delighted to be bringing a new Watery Walk to Distington and to be able to showcase Daniel's fantastic sculptures alongside the river and surrounding landscape.
Riveting Rivers is a brilliant example of how art can help people connect with a place, bringing together stories of wildlife, industry and the local community in a way that is fun and interactive.
We hope the sculptures will encourage people to stop, explore and discover something new about the natural world around them.
We'd also like to thank the landowners for allowing us to place these extraordinary pieces on their land for everyone to enjoy."
West Cumbria Rivers Trust has thanked the landowners for allowing the sculptures to be placed on their land, as well as the Potato Pot Community Benefit Fund, administered by GrantScape on behalf of Netro Energy Limited, for its support.
The Distington Watery Walk can be downloaded for free from West Cumbria Rivers Trust's website.